Reviews

Battlefield 3 PC Review

Sharkey's Second Opinion:
At the outset of Battlefield 3's first campaign mission, you emerge from the dark interior of a troop carrier with your squad and step out into the afternoon sun. The dazzling rays hit your eyes, and, for an instant, you can't help but squint like you've just left a matinee on a pristine day in July. The impressive effect, delivered during a simple transition scene that wouldn't be worth mentioning in another game, serves as a calling card from DICE that it has something special in store with Battlefield 3 – the type of special deserving of the game's months of build-up and $100 million worth of marketing hype.

Before I go any further, let me be clear: Battlefield 3 is a flawed game, particularly its campaign. Some might even say deeply so. But when simply looking up into the digital sun makes you say, "Wow" – never mind what it's like flying co-pilot in a fighter jet or hearing the battleground absolutely erupt all around you – those flaws need to be put into an entirely different context.

Battlefield 3 tells the story of Sgt. Henry "Black" Blackburn, a Recon Marine who manages to find himself smack dab in the middle of a terrorist plot to detonate nuclear weapons in Paris and New York, and, well… you know the rest. Campaigns have never been DICE's strength -- hell, the franchise got its start as a multiplayer-only affair -- and while BF3 represents a leap forward for the series in terms of its storytelling, it's treading the same ground that's already been tread, and retread, by Call of Duty: Modern Warfare. There is a Middle Eastern opposing force, there are Russian baddies, there are vehicle missions, there are sniping missions, there are badass squad mates, there are corridors filled with enemies that pop out, there are open areas filled with enemies that come streaming in from a few separate spawn points (all desperate to absorb your bullets), there are knife-filled quick time events, and there are explosions. Lots of explosions. Sound familiar?

"...What makes the game so special is Frostbite 2, the engine that enabled DICE to create the Gisele Bundchen of videogames."

What's new in Battlefield 3 and what makes the game so special is Frostbite 2, the engine that enabled DICE to create the Gisele Bundchen of games. And it's not simply amazing looking. Videogames have been called interactive entertainment experiences for years. Battlefield 3's I-just-want-to-walk-around-and-look-at-everything visuals combined with its even-more destructible environments and audio that deserves to be turned up to 11 (if you don't already have a surround sound system or headset, do yourself a favor and buy one for BF3) make it the first game truly deserving of that label.

Yup, you've heard Battlefield 3's story before, the AI for both friends and foes isn't good, and you can spot the wires of DICE's gameplay tricks. Doesn't matter. The overall experience created using Frostbite 2 is that special, in particular when you take to the skies in an F-18 Super Hornet in the game's stellar Going Hunting mission and wind up in the middle of a dog fight that will make Tog Gun fans yell, "Jester's dead!" No game has ever come so close to recreating the magic of flight.

And the campaign is just the appetizer for the main course. Long after you've made your way through the single-player story – which DICE primes for a direct sequel – you'll be playing what the Battlefield franchise is known for: its massive, vehicle-filled multiplayer. And you'll be playing this one for a looong time. Take the deeply immersive interactive video and audio experience from the single-player campaign and replace the I-heart-bullets AI enemies with human opponents (and squad mates), and whoa Nelly do you have a "just one more round" multiplayer that sets the bar at a lofty new height.

What's new in Battlefield's multiplayer? As a direct sequel to Battlefield 2, not Battlefield: Bad Company 2, much of what's "new" is actually familiar to long-time fans of the franchise. You can once again go prone, jets once again rule the skies, and the Commo Rose is back, allowing for easier, microphone-free communication (though DICE strangely removed some of the rose's most useful messages). What's new to everyone, most notably, is the merging of the Assault and Medic classes, a suppression mechanic that allows you to lay down screen-blurring (and experience earning) cover fire, and a Squad Leader feature that appoints one member of your crew C.O. and allows him to issue attack or defend orders. The additions, new and old, come together seamlessly and help make BF3's multiplayer play as polished as its visuals.

Maps can make a multiplayer game, and DICE has outdone itself with the nine battlegrounds available at launch. From the base-jumping verticality of Damavand Peak to the amphibious assault of Kharg Island to the vehicle-friendly expanse of Caspian Border to the close-quarters gunfights of Grand Bazaar, Battlefield 3 has a map for everyone, and played in sequence, they offer a terrific mix visually and in play style from one battleground to the next. Harbor-based and fog-filled Noshahr Canals is the weakest of the bunch. The fog effect looks good and may be considered a nice challenge for some, but it's counterintuitive in my book.

My weekend with Battlefield 3's multiplayer was not without its problems. Most notably, I got lost in loading limbo often while trying to join multiplayer matches, and given that I was playing among a limited PC reviewer audience, I'm worried that Electronic Arts and DICE may have bitten off more than they can chew with the combination of Origin, Battlelog, and the new backend supporting Battlefield 3. I saw smoke, and with that much new hardware and software getting its first real test tomorrow, and hundreds of thousands of PC gamers anxious to jump into battle, I expect there to be fire.

Here's to hoping the launch of Battlefield 3 goes smoother than its predecessor. It would be a shame for such an amazing interactive entertainment experience to be marred by technical issues. In the long run, though, it won't matter, because once players step out of that troop carrier and see the sun shining in their eyes like never before -- once they see the light -- they'll understand what a special game Battlefield 3 is.

Spy Guy says: Goodbye life, hello Battlefield 3 addiction. Have you made any special plans for the release day?